Emoia cyanura (Lesson, 1830)
Family: Scincidae Azure-tailed Skink Status: Indigenous Description: The Azure-tailed Skink is the other striped skink of the Mariana Islands. Like E. caeruleocauda, juveniles have three to five light colored stripes that run longitudinally down the body on an otherwise dark ground color. As individuals age the dark fields between the stripes lightens. This skink closely resembles the blue-tailed skink. See the description of that species for a discussion on how to differentiate between the two. Biology: Emoia cyanura is a diurnal terrestrial skink that prefers more open habitats and is active at slightly higher temperatures than the other skinks with which it co-occurs. This separation along habitat lines may reduce competition for food with the very similar E. caeruleocauda (McCoid and Henke 1997). Distribution: Emoia cyanura is one of the most wide-spread species of skink in the pacific (Ineich and Zug 1991). However, in the Mariana Islands, it is only known from Cocos Island off of the southern tip of Guam. There is a record of this species from the Geus River Valley in southern Guam that is apparently valid (Kami et al. 1974) but none have been detected in several decades. Ineich I, and George Zug. 1991. Nomencaltural status of Emoia cyanura (Lacertilia Scincidae) populations in the cental pacific. Copeia (4) 1132-1136. Kami H. T., N. Drahos, R. J. Lujan., J. J. Jeffrey. 1974. Biological Study of the Geus River Basin. University of Guam Marine Lab. Technical Report 16. pp. 1-22 McCoid M. J., and S. E. Henke. 1997. The Role of Carlia cf. fusca (Scincidae) in the Decline of the Herptofauna of Guam, Mariana Islands. Report to the Biological Resource Division of the U.S. Geological Survey. |